How to Make Cajun Grilled Shrimp (Spicy and Mild!)

These spicy Cajun grilled shrimp are full of big flavor! Covered in a homemade spice blend, they’re fast and easy to grill.

Here’s a grilled dinner idea that’s quick, easy, and full of huge flavor: Cajun grilled shrimp! If you love Cajun spices and a little heat, you’ll love these smoky, tender shrimp, and they take less than 5 minutes on the grill.

Serve it up with a side of grilled peppers, and it’s a fantastic summer meal. If you can’t do spicy food, I’ve got a mild version for you too. It all depends on the homemade spice blend you decide to whip up. Here’s how to do it!

Choosing your shrimp

You’ll just need a few ingredients for Cajun grilled shrimp, and most of the ingredients are spices. But the most important of all is the shrimp, of course! Here are a few notes about the type of shrimp to look for:

• Medium to large shrimp: I used the 26-30 per pound size.
• Tail on or peeled: I find tail-on looks the prettiest, but you may want to do fully peeled for ease of use.
• Deveined: This is preferable to save a step of deveining.
• Fresh or frozen: You can use either! Frozen can be as high quality as fresh if it’s frozen as soon as it’s caught.
• Wild caught: Fish that is wild caught in your country is usually a sustainable choice. There are also quality options in well-regulated farms.

Cajun vs. blackened seasoning

Besides the shrimp, the other main ingredient in this spicy Cajun grilled shrimp recipe is the seasoning! I recommend making the homemade seasoning blend to get just the right flavor, but you can use store-bought in a pinch.

Here are the two seasonings to try, depending on what spice level you’d like:

• Cajun seasoning (spicy): This homemade Cajun seasoning is spicy, featuring paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, fennel seed (optional), cumin, cayenne, and salt and pepper.
• Blackened seasoning (mild): This blackened seasoning has similar flavors but less heat. It features paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, celery seed, allspice, cloves, cayenne, and salt and pepper.

You can also head to my recipe for blackened shrimp if you prefer a milder version of this recipe.

How to make Cajun grilled shrimp

Once you’ve got the ingredients in hand, it’s so simple to make this recipe. Shrimp cooks so quickly that it’s one of my favorite things to throw on the grill. Seriously, who needs to smoke things for hours when you can have this big of flavor in just a few minutes?

Here are the basic steps:

• Preheat a grill to medium-high. That’s 375 to 450 degrees, the grill temperature for most vegetables and seafood.
• Mix the shrimp with olive oil and seasoning. See the notes above!
• Grill 1 to 2 minutes per side, until opaque and tender. That’s it!

Adding grilled peppers

Here’s an easy side dish to add to Cajun spicy grilled shrimp: grilled peppers! Multi-colored peppers look beautiful, and they’re tender with a lightly sweet flavor. Here are a few options for grilling up some bell peppers:

• Grilled peppers: Here’s how to make grilled peppers, right on the grates or in a grill basket.
• Grilled peppers and onion: Even better, add a red onion! These grilled peppers and onions make a beautiful rainbow of colors.

More grilled veg options

There are lots more tasty grilled vegetables to make a meal out of this Cajun grilled shrimp. The only thing to keep in mind is the physical space on your grill. You may have to make them in batches! Here’s what I’d recommend to make it a meal:

• Perfect Grilled Corn or Corn in the Husk: It’s no question. Grilled corn goes with pretty much anything and always hits the spot.
• Grilled Potatoes in Foil, Grilled Potatoes, Grilled Baked Potato, or Grilled Sweet Potatoes: Potatoes make a fitting pair for shrimp.
• Grilled Zucchini, Eggplant, Grilled Okra, or Grilled Squash: These are all great ways to round out this meal.

Want more grilled seafood? Try my Grilled Scallops, Grilled Salmon, Grilled Tilapia, Grilled Cod, or Grilled Ahi Tuna.

How to thaw shrimp

Frozen shrimp is incredibly convenient. You can load up your freezer for healthy dinners for months! The only hard part about frozen is remembering to thaw it.

Here are two methods for thawing shrimp, depending on when you start:

• Day before: If you think ahead, simply place the frozen shrimp in the refrigerator overnight.
• Day of: Place the frozen shrimp into a large bowl with very cold water. Stir the bowl every 5 minutes to break up clumps of shrimp that freeze together. The shrimp should be defrosted in about 15 minutes.

This spicy Cajun grilled shrimp recipe is…

Pescatarian, dairy-free, and gluten-free.

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More shrimp recipes

Shrimp is a great healthy meal choice if you eat seafood. Here are some of my favorite healthy shrimp recipes:

• Perfect Sauteed Shrimp or Honey Garlic Shrimp: These really are the best easy shrimp recipes, with the best seasoning.
• Shrimp Stir Fry or Classic Shrimp Fajitas: These classic dinners take 30 minutes or less.
• Shrimp Pesto Pasta: Cover the noodles in glistening green basil pesto for a meal that pleases everyone or try my Easy Pesto Shrimp.
• 3 Cheese Shrimp Pizza: It’s like shrimp alfredo…on pizza crust!
• Shrimp Cocktail: The zesty famous cocktail sauce will have everyone begging for the recipe.